Howl
by Aero-Klaine
Summary: After witnessing a werewolf accident several years earlier, Kurt gets to know someone at Hogwarts he never would have imagined. Only problem; he may know more than the other realises.
1. Prologue

**Title**: Howl  
><strong>Rating<strong>: M

**Summary**: After witnessing a werewolf accident several years earlier, Kurt gets to know someone at Hogwarts he never would have imagined. Only problem; he may know more than the other realises.  
><strong>Genre(s):<strong> Angst && Romance  
><strong>Warning(s):<strong> Violence  
><strong>Timeline<strong>: Kurt's 6th year at Hogwarts  
><strong>Word Count:<strong> 2,627  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> I do not own Glee or Harry Potter, they belong to the brilliant minds of RIB and JK Rowling. The title of this fic is a song by Florence and the Machine, so credit to them I suppose.

**Author's Note:** Another fic I should probably not have started writing until I finished my other ones… hm, oh well. This idea was inspired by a –rather horrifying but inspirational nonetheless- dream I had recently. All I did was change the world… and maybe the characters… and here you have it! (come on, it was a dream, I'm not even entirely sure what was going on because I'm pretty sure it happened at an Alvin and the Chipmunks concert… I don't even know) anyway, I'll let you get to reading! I had to do a prologue first, because otherwise it wouldn't have made quite as much sense…

~o.O.o~

**Prologue.**

Twelve year old Kurt Hummel was tired.

There was of course, a completely valid reason for this, as many would think that, at twelve, one would _have _to have a valid reason for being tired.

Especially one such as Kurt Hummel.

So, in some huge misunderstanding during Charms earlier that day, he had been given detention.

Yes. Kurt Hummel. Had detention. He'd –of course- thrown an epic tantrum afterwards, back in the Ravenclaw common room. But it didn't help the fact that he _still_ had detention.

He hadn't even done anything really. He'd just chosen to retaliate against all the taunts being thrown at him from various others in the classroom –at the worst possible time.

Professor Flitwick had turned around during his lecture just as Kurt fired a –clearly above normal skill level, though no one seemed to care- Impediment Jinx at Noah Puckerman, a Gryffindor boy who –in Kurt's opinion- was among the Hogwarts population with too few brain cells to possibly be 'brave, daring and chivalrous', like Gryffindors were _supposed_ to be.

But, unfortunately, Noah had been on the receiving end –_this_ time- and Kurt had gotten detention.

Small, awkward, pale-skinned Kurt, who was always singled out by the rest of the student body for being too 'different'.

They were all witches and wizards though, how could _any_ of them possibly be discriminated against for being _different_?

Of course, Kurt had been convincing himself since his first year, bit by bit, that, despite what everyone said about _him_ being, 'worthless and pathetic', _they_ were all going to be working at The Three Broomsticks as cleaners, while _he _cured dozens of diseases at St Mungo's.

It was these thoughts that were running through Kurt's head as he slowly made his way back to the dormitory, staring at the light the full moon was casting through the windows of the corridor he'd taken as a short cut.

He was rather close to the windows, half glancing out them onto the grounds bathed in light, half looking down at his boots –he refused to wear the regulated school shoes, opting instead for a pair of black leather lace up boots he'd bought whilst exploring muggle London.

It was when he spared another glance out the window that he spotted something.

A figure, walking around the grounds.

Kurt immediately stopped and peered down. It was too far away to see any sort of hint at who it was, but it was definitely a student, if the shortness and black robes with the white shirt peeking out were any hint.

Kurt frowned. It was almost curfew, and there was a student on the grounds. They seemed to be walking back from the edge of the lake, rather slowly, as if thinking deeply rather than paying attention to where they were headed. At this point, Kurt had deduced that the student was male, as their hair was too short even for the most daring of girls trying to make a statement.

Kurt simply stood there for several moments, watching, and was about to shrug and walk away when he saw another flicker of movement.

It came from the edge of the forest, and, just as Kurt realized that it certainly _wasn't_ human, everything seemed to go in slow motion.

The person walking along, head bowed, hadn't noticed anything, continuing slowly towards the castle. They didn't actually realize something was wrong until the… whatever it was, was only a few meters away, and closing in fast. They stopped, seemingly paralysed as it came towards them, and after quickly looking around and seeing no obvious means of escape or protection, covered their face with both arms, their body visibly shaking from even this far away.

Kurt was frozen as he watched it all, going into shock. Because it _couldn't _be happening. It was way too out of the ordinary, even for a wizarding school and –oh god.

The thing leapt, and Kurt finally shut his eyes and looked away, unable to watch as whoever it was was tackled to the ground. He had seen the things teeth shining horribly in the moonlight, and was completely mortified.

It was at that point that Kurt finally realised what the thing was.

_Oh my god_, he thought desperately, scrunching his eyes tighter. _It's a werewolf. Oh my god, _why_ would somebody even be outside during the full moon, oh my _god.

He started panicking then, quickly looking through the window and letting out a horrible sigh of relief when he saw that the werewolf was gone, but sucking it back in when he saw the student it had attacked.

_Oh my _god_ a werewolf just attacked a student! Oh god I have to find someone oh my god. _Kurt forced himself to look away from the figure on the grounds -which was unnaturally still and looking horribly like a broken doll- and began sprinting down the corridor, thinking desperately.

Thank god he was only a few corners away from the teacher's lounge. There had to be at least _one_ teacher still awake in there.

When Kurt made it to the door, out of breath, he didn't bother knocking, simply bashing the door open and frantically looking inside. He heaved a sigh of relief when he spotted Professors Flitwick, McGonagall and Slughorn, who all looked equally surprised when they saw him.

"Mr Hummel!" Flitwick squeaked, "Your detention should be finished, aren't you heading back to the tower ye-"

"A student's been attacked!" he practically shouted at them, glancing between the three as he cut off the tiny Charms teacher.

"I'm sorry, what?" McGonagall sputtered.

Kurt's eyes widened desperately. "I was walking back –looked –student outside –_werewolf_ –came her-"

He was cut off by Slughorn's sputtering as McGonagall quickly strode towards him, lips pressed into a grim line while Flitwick paled behind her.

"Where?" The Headmistress demanded, and Kurt backed out through the door quickly, beckoning to them. "Horace, go get Pomona, Will and Poppy, quick. Filius, come with me,"

Kurt quickly led the two teachers to the corridor and almost collapsed against the nearest window, pointing out it. "D-down there…"

The teachers came up beside him and looked down, spotting the students body. McGonagall let out a horrible gasp and Flitwick shuddered.

"Oh my, oh no…" McGonagall quickly began walking towards the nearest staircase, muttering frantically to herself. "Filius stay with Mr Hummel, tell Horace where I am once he arrives. I'm going to go out and get Hagrid to help me carry the student inside," Flitwick nodded, looking paler by the second as McGonagall disappeared around a corner.

He turned to face Kurt, who was feeling his eyes burning with tears as he looked down at the student, who still hadn't moved.

Flitwick seemed to be in a similar state, and neither of them said anything until the other Heads of House and Matron appeared.

"Filius, what's going on? Horace said someone was attacked!" Professor Sprout was looking extremely worried, as was Madam Pomfrey. Professor Schuester glanced between Flitwick and Kurt quickly before gently placing a hand on the latter's shoulder.

"Kurt, are you okay?"

Kurt shook his head slowly, closing his eyes, but was unable to stop the images of the werewolf running towards the student flashing through his head. He took a shuddering breath and opened them again, giving Flitwick a look which desperately sent across his wish to not talk.

"M-Mr Hummel witnessed a s-student get attacked by a werewolf,"

Schuester closed his own eyes and tilted his head towards the floor, Madam Pomfrey and Professor Sprout letting out twin gasps of horror as they quickly shuffled to the next window, looking down through it.

Kurt did the same, and saw that McGonagall had made it outside and was walking away from Hagrid's hut, the giant man trailing behind her as they moved quickly towards the student.

Kurt looked away again, unable to stop the small sob that made its way up his throat. He felt Professor Schuester's hand grip his shoulder tighter and leaned into the touch.

He heard the other teachers quickly go the same way McGonagall did, obviously to help, but Schuester stayed with Kurt.

"Kurt, what happened?" He asked gently.

Kurt bit his lip, glancing up at his Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and suddenly wishing his dad was here.

"I-I was walking back from detention and… I l-looked out the window and saw him walking b-back towards the castle… b-but, it came out of the f-forest and…" He sucked in a shuddering breath, willing himself to continue, refusing to let any tears fall. He didn't even know who it was yet. But that was the problem.

It could be one of his friends, for all he knew.

"And uhm… he saw it coming but… h-he couldn't do anything, so he just stood there as it –as it…" he had to stop himself, closing his eyes again and reaching out to clutch the front of his robes, letting himself sink to the floor. He felt the teacher sink down with him, and was grateful for the arm around his shoulders.

"It-it's gonna be alright, Kurt… okay? He'll be f-fine," Kurt could tell Schuester was trying to convince himself of this as much as he was Kurt, but he continued to repeat it as they sat there and waited.

It seemed to take an eternity and yet no time at all before they heard the other Professors returning. Kurt stood up, feeling his hair completely out of place, yet he barely gave it a thought as he felt his stomach clench.

The boy was on a stretcher, floating in between McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey, and the others were walking behind them, faces solemn. Hagrid's hands had an amount of blood on them, as he'd obviously carried the boy for a while before someone had thought to conjure the stretcher.

Kurt looked between all the professors before finally looking at the boy as he drew nearer.

He was unconscious, which was expected, and his dark curly hair was matted with blood and dirt, small leaves caught in between. He had one long scratch running from just below his left ear all the way to the top of his ribs. It wasn't particularly deep, but it was bleeding profusely. But just underneath it and to the right a little, was a giant bite mark, visible through the torn and mangled shirt. Kurt numbly noticed the Hufflepuff tie around the boys neck, before he looked away, fighting the urge to vomit.

Professor Schuester was extremely pale now and he questioned quietly, "Who is it?"

Professor Sprout let out a small sob. "B-Blaine Anderson…"

Kurt felt his stomach clench tighter.

He didn't really know him, but they did share several classes, and he was one of the few boys in his year who wasn't constantly teasing him. On several occasions, Kurt had seen him send Kurt a sad smile.

Schuester gave a small nod. "Do you want me to contact his parents?"

McGonagall nodded rather stiffly. "We'll get him to the Hospital Wing and bandage up his wounds, but we'll have to send him to St Mungo's." Schuester nodded again. He turned back to look at Kurt, who glanced up, feeling the tears hot on his face now.

"Kurt, don't worry, okay? We'll get him to St Mungo's and he'll be fine," Kurt could still hear the disbelief in his teacher's voice, but he nodded anyway. Schuester gave him a small smile before he turned away heading to his office.

"Kurt, I'll take you back to the tower now I think…"

He nodded again as Professor Flitwick moved towards him, giving Blaine's unconscious form one last glance before turning around, numbly following his Head of House back to Ravenclaw tower.

~o.O.o~

"Did you hear about that Blaine kid?"

"Yeah, someone said he was sent to St Mungo's the other night,"

"Oh my god, I wonder what happened!"

"No one knows…"

"Do you think someone might have used an Unforgivable on him or something?"

"Nah I bet he tried to go for a swim in the lake and was attacked by the Giant Squid,"

"Don't be ridiculous…"

Kurt kept his head down as he ate breakfast, three days after the 'incident'. The Great Hall was practically buzzing with the news, though Kurt wasn't sure how they'd found out Blaine had been sent to St Mungo's. As far as he knew, no one else had been told.

He stole a glance at the Hufflepuff table and spotted the boys in his year sitting together looking extremely pale, barely touching their plates.

Did they know?

No, of course not.

The teachers wouldn't have told them just because they shared a dorm.

For the hundredth time, Kurt wished _he_ hadn't been the one to see what had happened.

~o.O.o~

"Is he coming back to school?" Kurt asked McGonagall in a small voice. He was sitting in her office after being summoned there in the middle of Potions.

"That will be up to his parents. We have had a student with his… _condition_, at the school before, though he had been dealing with it for several years, and there weren't any potions to help him at the time. He was still a very capable student, however, -and later _teacher_- so I don't see why Mr Anderson can't do the same,"

Kurt gave a small nod.

"I know this is going to be hard for you, knowing about this, but you have to swear not to tell anyone. Only the staff, Blaine's parents and you know, and it is best that it stays this way. Mr Anderson will be dealing with enough as it is without others finding out," Kurt nodded again. He already knew this.

McGonagall stared at him for a moment before letting out a sigh. "Kurt, I can only imagine the effect of seeing something like that happening, and you are being very brave. But if you ever feel the need to just talk about it, you know my password,"

Kurt slowly looked up at the Headmistress, feeling his hands shake slightly before he nodded again, giving her a small smile which she returned.

"You can go back to class now, Kurt," Kurt stood, gathering his bag and was about to turn when McGonagall spoke again, reaching for a tartan tin on her desk. "Would you like a Ginger Newt?"

Kurt's smile grew slightly wider and he reached into the tin, pulling out one lizard shaped biscuit before turning and walking out of the office.

When he was gone, McGonagall let out a loud sigh, looking up at one of the portraits of an old Headmaster.

"Do you think he'll be able to handle the information, Albus?"

The silver-bearded wizard was quiet for a moment before he replied. "I think he'll make a good friend for Mr Anderson. Merlin knows that poor boy will need one,"

~o.O.o~

Blaine didn't return to Hogwarts for two and a half months, and when he did, Kurt was surprised his parents had let him.

The rumour mill started anew when he came back, and he was bombarded with questions, to which he gave the same excuse. He'd come down with Dragon pox, and had to stay at St Mungo's until he was better.

No one but Kurt seemed to notice the scar on his neck.

As much as Kurt wanted to go and talk to the boy, he couldn't.

He didn't think he'd be able to handle it just knowing he was a werewolf.

But Kurt was only twelve, and at twelve, you have to deal with these things yourself before trying to confront somebody about them.

He just had a little bit of growing up to do.

~o.O.o~

**A/N:**

So... yeah. A bit choppy, but I did write the majority of this at 3 in the morning on my ipod sooooo... yea. It'll get better, I swear! (I hope...)

Anyway, reviews please!

xx Gazellie


	2. Strangeness and Charm

**Author's Note:** Hey, look what I finally decided to update! Wow, I really shouldn't have left this so long, sorry guys :'D anyway, it's done now, don't fret, just read! (I changed the title though, after writing some more of it. _Strangeness and Charm_ seemed a bit more appropriate than _Remain Nameless_)

**Word Count: **3,302

~o.O.o~

**Chapter One: Strangeness and Charm**

It was the end of the month, and Kurt wondered for the eleventh time today what Blaine was doing.

Four years had passed, and Kurt had –more or less- come to terms with what he had witnessed.

He had also realised along the line that he was in fact, very much so gay.

And, because of this, the taunts had steadily grown worse, but he was well accustomed to it now.

He was currently sitting in the Ravenclaw common room with his two best friends, Mercedes and Tina, studying for an upcoming Transfiguration test. And yet, thoughts of Blaine still plagued him and after a while he threw his book down with a noise of frustration. Mercedes and Tina barely looked up, used to his moods at what they joked was 'his time of the month'.

Kurt always thought of Blaine at the end of the month. He couldn't help it. He knew what was going to be happening within the next few days, and he worried. Many people wondered where the both disappeared to, but always seemed to accept his excuse that his Dragon Pox had another bout.

Kurt wondered how people could be so dense.

After all this time though, Kurt still hadn't spoken to Blaine, other than the occasional 'pass the Sopophorous beans' in Potions. It wasn't that Kurt didn't _want_ to talk to Blaine –who, despite not getting much taller, _had_ actually gotten ridiculously attractive and hadn't had a single girlfriend- he just could never think of any way to talk to the boy without either making a complete spectacle of himself, or letting slip that he knew about his 'condition'.

So, Kurt kept his distance, watching silently as each month Blaine moved smoothly from a composed, well-mannered and positively friendly person, to a pale-faced, jumpy boy who tried his hardest to stay away from everyone.

And each month Kurt's heart broke just that little bit more as he watched him.

Kurt heaved a sigh and stood up wearily, gathering his textbooks. Mercedes raised an eyebrow at him and he shrugged.

"I'm going to the library, I can't concentrate," The girls merely nodded, knowing better than to argue with him, despite the fact that there was absolutely nothing in the common room that could be distracting him –every other Ravenclaw was doing the exact same thing they were.

Kurt passed Artie and Mike on the way out, Mike reversing the levitation on Artie's wheelchair just as Kurt walked by them. The two smiled at Kurt, which he returned quickly –and rather forcibly- before practically running out, making it to the library in record time.

He made his way to his usual table, situated three tables down from the door. He sat and spread the books around him, not glancing up when the doors he'd just come through opened again.

Just as he had begun reading the first book he'd picked up –_Advanced Transfiguration for Exceptional Learners_- he had decided to look up at the newcomer, in case it was a bully or someone he knew who would distract him from his studying.

He nearly dropped his book when he saw who it was.

_Blaine._

He felt the panic rise in his chest, immediately looking back down at the book, but simply staring at one word, reading it over and over, not trusting himself to move his eyes even the tiniest fraction, repeating in his head; _don't look up, keep reading, don't look up, read, see look, you're reading! Just reading, like a normal person. Swish. Swish. Swish. Swish. Oh god I can't read this word for too long I'll go insane! Swish. Swish… Maybe just look up to see where he's gone…_

Just as Kurt moved his eyes up, Blaine turned from a bookshelf, pulling one out and making eye contact with Kurt.

_Actual eye contact._

_Oh lord, he's coming towards me now._

"Mind if I sit with you? I don't really like studying alone," The curly-haired boy looked kind of nervous –and pale, it was the end of the month though, so Kurt wasn't surprised- but he was smiling at Kurt.

After a moment Kurt nodded and squeaked out a reply.

"Oh, uhm! Y-yeah! Yeah, sure," He cleared his throat when Blaine grinned and plonked himself down across from him, setting his book on the table. Kurt glanced at the spine of it, scanning the title.

_Notable Transfiguration Experts_.

Right, Blaine was in his Transfiguration class.

"So," Blaine said, snapping Kurt's attention back to him, "Come here often?"

Kurt resisted the urge to gape at him. He opted instead for a raised eyebrow. Yeah, good choice.

"Oh, wow, I just ran that back through my head, worst pick-up line ever-" He stopped and widened his eyes "N-not that I'm trying to pick you up or anything! I mean, wow, okay, I'm gonna just –gonna shut up now. Yep,"

Blaine's face was flushed and he flipped his book open, staring intently at it.

And at that, Kurt couldn't help but laugh. Because hey, Blaine was kinda adorable when he was flustered.

He didn't full-out laugh, it was just a soft chuckle, though he could feel the grin spreading on his face despite himself.

"It is a really bad pick-up line, yes," he managed between laughs, Blaine looking back up at him in surprise, before a small smile tugged at his mouth too.

"Sorry. It was a stupid question anyway, since you're in Ravenclaw and all,"

"What does my being in Ravenclaw have to do with going to the library, exactly?"

Blaine's eyes widened adorably again, obviously mistaking Kurt's raised eyebrow for anger and not amusement as he began fumbling again.

"Whoa, hey, I'm kidding. I know that all the people in my house are utter study-addicts, it's something I've come to accept," Blaine let out a small laugh, which Kurt felt was some sort of small victory on his part. "Anyway, have you come to study for that stupid Transfiguration test too?"

Blaine raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Wha- oh, yea. Yeah, I am. Can I ask; why did you come to the library? I mean, wouldn't it' have been easier to stay in your common room? It is nearly curfew and stuff, so… I hope I'm not over-stepping or anything!"

"No, it's fine. I just… Was too distracted up there. Couldn't work,"

Kurt's eyes made their way down to the scar on Blaine's neck as he said this, feeling his gut clench as he looked at the puckered scar there, forcing himself to look away quickly.

"Oh, me too. Though I'm sure your common room can't be nearly as bad as mine, I couldn't get anything done down there," Blaine rolled his eyes and Kurt felt his eyebrow rise.

"Well, nothing much ever really happens in Ravenclaw Tower –aside from the occasional time one of us miscalculates our Levitation Spell and makes Artie hit the statue or roof," Kurt shrugged at this, feeling himself smiling at one particular memory of Tina making Artie get stuck to the roof, the wheels of his wheelchair refusing to move.

"I have kinda wondered sometimes how you got him up there," Blaine chortled, obviously trying to picture Artie floating around a stairwell.

"What goes on in _your_ common room that's so bad?" Kurt inquired.

Blaine grimaced at the question, but answered anyway.

"Nick and Jeff is what goes on in my common room. They're bloody lunatics,"

"Aren't they your best friends?" Kurt frowned.

"Says them," Blaine snorted, though Kurt could see the affection on his face.

"What do they do that's so bad anyway? Wait, no don't answer that. I remember Defence Against the Dark Arts in Third Year. They tried to turn themselves into Werewolves by trying to become _Animagi_. Like either of those things was going to happen to two thirteen-year-ol-"

Kurt cut himself off then, after realising exactly what he'd said, and noticing the other boy flinch ever so slightly.

_Oh god, what have I just said? Oh god, quick, distraction, study!_

Kurt cleared his throat.

"I better uh, study some more before curfew, then," and he quickly glanced down to his book.

_Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish! Man I really hate this word now, why can't I find a different one?_

There was silence for a good ten minutes, during which Kurt refused to move his eyes, opting instead to turn the page of his book twice, to make it seem like he was actually reading, picking a different word on each page to focus on for five minutes before-

_1637, 1637, 1637-_

"Five minutes until curfew,"

Kurt jumped at the sound of Madam Pince's voice as the creepy old lady skulked over them. He saw Blaine do the same thing out of the corner of his eye. He nodded at the librarian and began gathering his stuff, not noticing that Blaine was standing waiting for him until he was nearly done.

"Uhm, did you want to ask me something, or…?" Kurt managed to get out, refusing to make eye contact with the other boy.

"It's Kurt, right?"

That snapped his eyes to Blaine's

_Right. He probably doesn't actually know who I am. I'm just his creepy stalker guy who knows his worst secret._

"Y-yeah,"

"I'm Blaine," The boy stuck his hand out, waiting for Kurt to shake it, which he did, slowly.

"I… know? We've had classes together for six years,"

Blaine shrugged.

"We've never really met before though. So, now we have," Blaine smiled, "Nice to meet you, Kurt,"

Kurt felt something twist hard in his stomach because he _had_ met Blaine before, but the other boy had been unconscious due to the fact he'd just been _mauled_ and-

_Oh god you're looking at his scar again, look away idiot!_

"N-nice to meet you too,"

With a gentle squeeze, Blaine released his hand and turned towards the door. As he reached it, he looked over his shoulder and smiled. "See you around, Kurt,"

When the door shut behind his curly-head, Kurt fell back against a bookshelf.

_Well, it wasn't the best first conversation I've ever had, but I suppose it could have gone worse. It _is_ Blaine after all._

Kurt sighed and was just about to push himself slowly away when he heard Madam Pince's heels clacking and her screeching at him to 'get out, out, out!' and instead opted to plummet himself away and out the door, back to Ravenclaw Tower before Filch caught him.

He ignored Mercedes and Tina's questions of why he's back _after_ curfew –which, yeah, he was, but only _just_- and made his way up to the dormitory, throwing his books on top of his trunk and flopping onto his bed.

'See you around' Blaine had said. He actually wanted to see Kurt again, even after Kurt had mentioned the whole 'Niff Animagi-Werewolf Fiasco of '07' which he had seriously forgotten about until he'd mentioned it to Blaine.

It made him wonder though, if Nick and Jeff knew about Blaine.

Sure, Blaine could tell anyone he wanted and they _were_ his best friends but… Kurt had never noticed them acting any differently to him at any point over the few years.

But surely them trying to turn themselves into Werewolves couldn't just be a coincidence.

Could it?

~o.O.o~

Blaine looked worse the next day in Transfiguration, but he still did the test like everyone else, and Kurt noticed Professor Pillsbury's look of pity as he handed her his test.

He wasn't in any classes the next three days, and when he came back he looked somehow worse than he normally did after the full moon.

It was that fact that actually made Kurt approach him at lunch that Saturday.

Nick, Jeff and Thad, Blaine's friends, all looked up at Kurt in surprise and suspicion when he came over. Blaine himself didn't look around until Kurt had sat himself down in the empty spot next to him.

"Hey, Blaine," he said with a small smile, which the hazel-eyed boy returned after a moment.

"Hey Kurt. What brings you over from the Ravenclaw table?"

"Your friends look kinda pissed," Jeff decided to add after him, narrowing his eyes slightly.

"Oh, I just wanted to see how you were going and stuff. Heard your… Dragon pox, sprung up again. That's rough," He forced the scepticism out of his voice and gave Blaine a small sympathetic grimace.

"Ah, yeah, it did. I'm used to it happening now though it's… it happens often enough," Kurt could hear Blaine's voice straining slightly, and knew he was actually referring to the transformation, though Kurt didn't know how anyone could possibly get used to _that_.

"Well, I better head back over before Mercedes burns a hole in the back of my head," he joked, smiling at Blaine, who gave him a small grin in return. "Hope you feel better soon," He considered putting a hand on the other boys arm, but decided against it. Not only would he feel like he was crossing some sort of line, but Blaine's friends were all looking they wished he would spontaneously combust.

By the time he'd sat himself down next to Tina and Mercedes and ignored their questions of why he'd gone over to the Hufflepuff table, he realised that he really didn't know. He didn't know why he'd gone to speak to Blaine. He barely knew the boy, though he certainly knew more about him than Blaine knew about him, which caused a pang of guilt to go through his insides.

He shouldn't do that again. _Couldn't._ If he made even the tiniest mistake, Blaine would know that he _knew_. And Blaine would hate him if he found that out.

And not actually being friends with Blaine was definitely better than Blaine hating him.

So, as much as it hurt him, Kurt resolved that morning that he wouldn't talk to Blaine unless necessary again. He would continue just watching him from afar, worrying about him, wishing he could actually be friends with the boy.

Kurt sighed and pushed his plate away from him, standing and walking out of the Great Hall, still ignoring the worried voices of his friends.

He didn't see Blaine watch him make his way out of the hall, or see him stand once he was far enough away and start following him, ignoring his own friends.

~o.O.o~

"Kurt! Hey, wait up!"

Kurt froze.

_Why is he testing me like this?_

"H-hey, Blaine,"

He was halfway up a staircase, after having decided to go to the library for a while, and had seriously not been expecting Blaine to _follow him out of the Great Hall_.

"Heading to the library?"

Kurt stared at him in slight shock. "Yea-wait, what? How did you know that?"

"Ravenclaw's always go to the library. I think it might be your house motto or something. 'When in doubt, go to the library!'" Blaine grinned at him and Kurt rolled his eyes.

"Actually the house motto is 'Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure'. Cause, you know, Rowena Ravenclaw had that etched onto her diadem," Blaine frowned slightly at that.

"What the hell is a diadem?"

Kurt sighed.

"Not important. Did you need me for something?" He felt slightly guilty at his snappish tone, knowing Blaine didn't deserve it in the slightest, but he was annoyed that the boy now, after four years, had the sudden desire to talk to him.

"Ah, well not really but… I saw you walking out of lunch and you looked… depressed or something, and none of your friends followed you, so I was kinda worried, and since you worried about me and my… Dragon Pox, I just figured I could, you know, return the favour?"

Well.

_That was kind of… unexpectedly sweet of him._ Kurt felt himself blushing slightly, instantly willing it away as he replied slowly.

"Well, uhm… that's really swe -nice of you, but I just… remembered a book that I needed to borrow and read for… Ancient Runes. Yeah, Professor Jude told me it'd help understand… certain translations, so I… yeah. Need to borrow. The book. Like, now,"

Blaine looked slightly amused at how obviously flustered Kurt was getting. "Uh huh. You know, if you didn't want to talk about what's upsetting you, you could've just said so instead of coming up with such an… elaborate lie. It's not like I really know you and can tell you what to do about your problems," Blaine seemed to be saying the last part more to himself than Kurt, and before he could stop, Kurt said something he wished he actually regretted.

"You could get to know me better," He paused, flinching slightly at how many implications that sentence had –somewhat reminiscent of Blaine's line in the library a few nights earlier- before adding hastily, "You know, if you want to, I'm fine if you don't, really,"

"I do,"

Those two words, said rather quietly caught Kurt completely off guard. And when Blaine said them, Kurt had to look the other boy in the eye to try and see if he was telling the truth.

But, of course, Blaine's honey-coloured eyes were practically shining with honesty.

"You… do?"

Blaine nodded, smiling slightly.

"My friends will probably say I'm stupid or whatever –they think all Ravenclaw's are snobs, particularly you- but I don't really care what they think, they've tried to transfigure each other's wands into _liquorice_."

Kurt grimaced but felt himself grinning beneath it.

"Why on earth would they do that? Couldn't they just go buy some liquorice wands?"

"No, it was a specific type of liquorice. Some American red liquorice, Red Vines or something, they were rattling on about how 'Red Vines can do everything', I don't even know. That's beside the point anyway. When should we hang out?"

"Hang out?"

Blaine smiled at Kurt's confusion.

"I'm assuming people have to hang out to get to know each other, or do Ravenclaw's do it differently?"

"What's with all this Ravenclaw house discrimination?" Kurt exclaimed, though he was holding back a laugh.

"You're deflecting, Kurt, stop deflecting!"

"Right, sorry. Uhm… this is assuming you don't want to go to the library?"

Blaine snorted out a laugh, which made Kurt wonder how he made look somehow elegant and charming. How on earth was a snort _charming?_

"I was thinking something more… not-recluse-y. Like Hogsmeade,"

"I'm not a _recluse!_" Kurt exclaimed in indignation before he really processed the rest of what Blaine had said. "W-wait. Hogsmeade? Like, _Hogsmeade _Hogsmeade?"

"Unless there's another Hogsmeade hidden somewhere, yes. Hogsmeade," Blaine raised his eyebrows slightly at Kurt's stunned look.

"Uhm. Hogsmeade. Yeah that sounds –that sounds good. That's uhm, next weekend, right?"

Blaine nodded.

"Right, okay. Uhm, okay then. Next weekend. Hogsmeade. Getting to… getting to know each other. Okay,"

Kurt was rambling now, he knew it. Blaine seemed to think it was cute or something though, as he grinned in reply.

"Awesome! Next weekend! I'll see you then –well, actually, you'll see me before, since we have like, three classes together, but you know what I mean,"

"Yeah, I –yeah. I'll –yeah,"

The fact that Kurt really couldn't string together coherent sentences seemed to give Blaine the hint that he should probably leave before Kurt had some sort of vital breakdown and was rendered mute or something.

"Well… Bye then, Kurt," And he turned back down the stairs, pausing only to look back up over his shoulder, smile, wink and wave.

Kurt stood there for several long moments.

Processing.

_Hogsmeade._

_Next weekend._

_With Blaine._

_He was going to Hogsmeade next weekend with Blaine._

_On a date._

_He had just agreed to go on a date with Blaine Anderson, not ten minutes after he'd resolved to not talk to the boy._

_Well, I've really gotten myself into it now, haven't I?_

~o.O.o~


End file.
